Hapoel Tel Aviv eyes Euroleague playoffs while Maccabi prays for spot
MACCABI TEL AVIV coach Oded Katash and his team Hapoel Tel Aviv defeated Fenerbahce 95-80 as the Reds closed in on clinching a playoff spot with a record of 22-13. Meanwhile, a crucial contest awaits Maccabi as its aspirations are questioned. Israeli teams in Euroleague action had mixed results this week as Hapoel Tel Aviv took a huge step toward not only securing a playoff spot but also to holding home-court advantage, while Maccabi Tel Aviv ’s play-in aspirations were put into doubt.
Hapoel Tel Aviv defeated Fenerbahce 95-80 as the Reds closed in on clinching a playoff spot with a record of 22-13, good for fourth place overall in the standings. Dimitrios Itoudis’s team came out of fire as Elijah Bryant, Dan Oturu, Antonio Blakeney and Vasilije Micic were able to lead Tel Aviv to a 51-38 lead at halftime while neutralizing Talen Horton-Tucker and holding him scoreless over the opening 20 minutes. Wade Baldwin tried to keep the Turkish side close with 17 first-half points, but was only able to score five points over the course of the second half as Hapoel cruised to the 15-point victory.
Oturu scored 23 points, Bryant added 21 points, and Micic scored 19 points in the win, while Baldwin scored 22 points in the defeat. Itoudis spoke about the win, saying, “First, I want to congratulate the team. We were the better team from start to finish, so we deserve to win today.
We won against the defending champions, a great, well-coached team. It was a very important game, and I’m proud of the performance. We were locked in with the right mindset from the beginning.
We stuck to the plan and the players executed brilliantly. ” Soccer Football - UEFA Europa League - Maccabi Tel Aviv v Bologna - TSC Arena, Backa Topola, Serbia - January 29, 2026 Bologna's Tommaso Pobega scores their third goal (credit: REUTERS/MARKO DJURICA) Oturu, the game’s MVP, discussed the importance of the win. "We knew coming into the game we were starting off a double week against a very good opponent, Fener, the defending champions, so it was important for us to bounce back against them and win," he said.